Spokane doc gets $600K and apology from state

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The case decimated his practice and personal life, he told The Spokesman-Review last week.

"This was a good faith effort to protect the public, but there were oversights during the investigation," the state's official apology said. "We apologize for those oversights and regret any damage done to Dr. Werschler's personal goodwill, reputation and the distress this has caused his family."

Despite the apology, Phil Werschler, 54, said there remains an undercurrent of suspicion.

"I have the scarlet letter on me as a doctor, a husband and father," he said.

His children were teased at school. Pharmaceutical and research companies withdrew his professional affiliations. Longtime friends and medical colleagues distanced themselves.

State officials said they were duty bound to investigate the anonymous allegations that eventually looped back to the ex-wife, according to depositions. But the state's two-year probe spiraled into conspiracy, vendetta and a complete loss of investigative protocol and perspective, said Phil Werschler's attorneys.

Top health officials now use the case as a teaching tool, and "new practices are in place to prevent these types of oversights in the future," the official apology said.

Department of Health spokesman Donn Moyer said the case helped prompt a review and policy change in matters of investigations of licensed professionals.